Senator David Vitter Claims A Petition Will Stop Ebola In Louisiana

It’s not a big secret how I – and many other Louisiana residents – feel about David Vitter, our junior two-term U.S. Senator. In fact, this scumbag who managed to survive a prostitution scandal that involved a dead madam and an alleged adult diaper fetish, has been referred to by The Daily Beast as “America’s Most Contemptible Senator.” I personally find that description to be far too kind as I would prefer to eat cayenne pepper covered broken glass every morning for breakfast than to ever pull the lever for this fear-mongering, Obama hate-baiting, sorry excuse for a senator.

If you don’t keep up with Louisiana politics, David Vitter has decided to possibly leave Washington and screw over the residents of Louisiana on a full-time basis as the next governor of Louisiana. Trust me, if you thought Bobby Jindal was bad, you’re really going to hate David Vitter, who has been named by CREW (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington) as one of the most corrupt members of Congress.

As part of his campaign for governor, David Vitter has apparently decided to go with the “everything is Obama’s fault” mantra, which seems to work in Louisiana and other red states. In fact, I’ve seen people actually blame President Obama for the lack of access to Medicaid, despite the fact that it was Republicans who blocked it in Louisiana and other places to begin with. If you think about it, it’s really nothing more than the “Southern Strategy” retooled with an extra helping of paranoia for the children of those who originally left the Democratic Party over the support for civil rights.

Ever the opportunist, David Vitter decided to cash in on the now-dwindling Ebola scare by blaming the crisis on President Obama – despite the fact that not one American citizen has died from the disease. That fact is lost though on the millions of people who still think that the president is planning to use Ebola to declare martial law, take their guns, put them in FEMA camps and turn their children gay. I know this sounds absolutely preposterous, but you need to look no further than the comments section on nearly any news channel to see that there really are people out there who are that hateful and delusional – and David Vitter is not the only Republican pushing the panic over Ebola for political gain, as The Daily Beast points out:

So why are the Republicans continuing with their one-two punch of “Ebola is going to get you” and “Obama is failing to protect your family?” Simple. Fear is the GOP’s modus operandi. We have seen the GOP use it effectively in the past regarding gay marriage, Muslims, blacks and Latinos. They scare voters into voting for them because frankly it’s much simpler than discussing complex issues—like creating jobs, immigration reform, or health care. (Source)

What’s even more hypocritical is that Senator Vitter opposed funds to fight the Ebola outbreak because it “focuses on Africa,” and because Senator Vitter is obviously not an epidemiologist, nor does he apparently possess one ounce of decency as evidenced by the following screenshots of petitions he’s been sponsoring on Facebook.

If you’ve followed my Facebook page for any length of time, you’ll know my cynical view on petitions which are usually used to sign up people for mailing lists and political campaigns. This one from David Vitter popped up in my newsfeed today and may be the most ridiculous and dishonest petition I have seen yet. In case you’re not familiar with the ins and outs of Facebook, a sponsored post is one that someone (David Vitter’s staff in this case) pays Facebook to push into people’s newsfeeds, including people like me who don’t “like” Senator Vitter or his page.

This isn’t wasn’t a one time posting either, as Senator Vitter’s page also posted links to this petition on the 17th and 21st of this month when the Ebola scare was still going strong.

Here’s where it gets interesting. If you click on the link, it takes you to his website where he is already campaigning for governor. If you sign the petition as I imagine a number of gullible people did, you are then signed up for his campaign’s email list where he can hit you up for donations and probably tell you about how his Democratic opponent, John Bel Edwards, is an Obama-loving communist who kicks the puppies of white, conservative Christian children. While it may very well be that Vitter’s gubernatorial campaign funds paid for the sponsored post, and not taxpayer funds, I wouldn’t put it past the guy who got $100,000 in federal money allocated to a creationist group that supported him to do something dishonest. In addition to that, this isn’t the only petition he’s been using to promote his campaign for governor.

Screenshot containing other petitions promoted by Senator David Vitter’s official Facebook page.

Sad to say, even if for some reason David Vitter was to be caught in bed with a live boy or a dead girl (that’s an Edwin Edwards reference for you) sometime between now and Election Day next year, he’ll probably still get elected as governor. If you ever needed a better example of the Southern Strategy at work and people voting against their own interests, just follow Louisiana politics for a little while. These petitions show just how stupid David Vitter thinks the majority of voters in Louisiana are, and sadly, he’s probably right.

“If you can convince the lowest white man that he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll even empty his pockets for you.” – President Lyndon B. Johnson